Bulgarian Church celebrates 70th anniversary of martyrdom of Met. Boris of Nevrokop

Blagoevgrad, November 20, 2018

Photo: bulgarianhistory.org Photo: bulgarianhistory.org
    

On November 8, the Bulgarian Orthodox Church marked 70 years from the martyrdom of His Eminence Metropolitan Boris (Razumov) of Nevrokop who is widely venerated as a saint. October 26 also marked the 130th anniversary of his birth in the Bulgarian village of Gyavato.

As the site of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church writes, “Metropolitan Boris remains in the people’s memory through his education and erudition, with the flame of his words and the living confession of his faith in Christ, and his qualities as a true shepherd who laid down his life for his parishioners.”

In tribute to his merits, high spirituality, and martyrdom, with the blessing of His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim of Nevrokop, the Blagoevgrad Municipality, South-West University “Neofit Rilski” and the Macedonian Scientific Institute organized a solemn two-day commemoration on November 16 and 17, including a series of events open to the general public.

On November 16 a solemn academic session was held presenting papers on the life and personality of Metropolitan Boris with the participation of representatives of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and the academic community as well as prominent public figures and people whose memories have been sealed by His Eminence Metropolitan Boris.

Photo: bg-patriarshia.bg Photo: bg-patriarshia.bg
    

Following the conference, an historical-documentary exhibition of photographs and documents from the life and service of Metropolitan Boris was opened, reports the site of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.

In his report, Fr. Stoyan Berbatov spoke of how Met. Boris bravely rebuked every ideology that contradicts Christian values and virtues, and warned of the preaching of atheism in schools.

“The schools strive to convey to our children that our ancestors were animals and derived from animals,” the holy hieromartyr lamented in one of his brochures, as quoted by Fr. Stoyan.

Other talks focused on his zealous efforts to further educate his clergy, his social activity, personal memories of him, and the movement to see him glorified as a saint of the Church.

Photo: bg-patriarshia.bg Photo: bg-patriarshia.bg
    

Photo: bg-patriarshia.bg Photo: bg-patriarshia.bg
    

The celebration continued the next day with the hierarchical Divine Liturgy in the Church of the Entrance of the Mother of God, after which a panikhida was served at the holy hieromartyr’s grave. Several hierarchs of the Bulgarian Church and numerous clergy, monastics, and faithful gathered in the church to honor their holy father in the faith.

Photo: bg-patriarshia.bg Photo: bg-patriarshia.bg
    

“I am sure that you have love in your heart for him, as a sign of respect for his bright memory, not as some cult, but as the glorification of God in His saints. That is what brings us together today,” Met. Seraphim of Nevrokop said during the memorial services.

Watch the Divine Liturgy and service at his grave below:

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The Metropolitan a Martyr

Metropolitan Boris of Nevrokop has left a deep trace of his life and memory for both the Christians and priests of the Nevrokop Diocese and the life of the Bulgarian Church at large.

The future Bishop Boris was born on the feast of St. Dimitar of Thessalonica in 1888 in the village of Gyavato, Bitolq (today in the Republic of Macedonia). He lived modestly and poorly with his parents. In 1910, Vangel Razumov (Met. Boris’ name in the world) graduated from the Constantinople Theological Seminary. During his training he received a scholarship from Exarch Joseph, who was impressed by his exemplary and humble attitude. In 1915, as a hierodeacon, Boris graduated from the Faculty of Theology in Chernovits, Austria. After 1917, Hierodeacon Boris was ordained as a hieromonk and he began to even more diligently help the godly people in their spiritual growth and perfection. It was because of this activity that he attracted the attention of senior churchmen who summoned him to Sofia and distinguished him with the title of Archimandrite and appointed him as the protosingel of the Metropolitan of Sofia. From 1926 to 1931 he was the rector of the St. John of Rila Theological Seminary in Sofia.

He was also a writer: He wrote for the Church newspaper, published his poems, and was the author of the famous brochure “The Crisis in Our Schools.” In choosing Fr. Boris as Metropolitan of the Diocese of Nevrokop, Professor Hristo Gyaurov wrote: "Every nation needs not only political leaders, but at the same time, and even more so spiritual leaders. Of such leaders, the Bulgarian people now have a special need. When the newly-elected Metropolitan of Nevrokop occupies his place in the Diocese of Nevrokop, designated by God, he will enter into the number of these leaders of the Bulgarian people.” Canonically elected in 1935, Metropolitan Boris assumed the headship of the Nevrokop Diocese. He was met with great enthusiasm in the diocese by thousands of godly Christians.

Almost immediately after his start as a hierarch, Met. Boris sent a letter to his priests in the Nevrokop Diocese in which he designated ten principle activities of a priest. Met. Boris wrote:

The shepherds of the Church of Christ must always know and remember their sacred and irrevocable duty not only to act as priests, but also to teach and train their flock, to preach to all the Word of God, to enlighten men with Christ's truth and to warm up with Christ's love. Therefore, according to the Divine commandment of our Savior, the wise counsels and suggestions of the Apostles and the instructive example of all worthy pastors and ministers of Christ, I oblige all dear priests in the Nevrokop Diocese:

1. Above all, they themselves must know the truths of Christian faith and Christian morality, and live and act according to them.

2. To serve Divine Liturgy regularly on all Sunday and feast days, and to always offer at the end of the Divine Liturgy accessible and well-prepared sermons lasting no more than 10-15 minutes.

3. Having pre-enlightened themselves, revived and excited by the great Divine truths of the Christian faith and morality, to clarify these truths to Christians.

4. To immediately establish at each church an Orthodox Christian Brotherhood according to the Statute for the Orthodox Christian Brotherhoods in Bulgaria, to serve the church board and the church trustees, who are necessarily members of the brotherhood.

5. To give talks for the members and all Christians who would like to listen twice a week.

6. To discover and explain in lectures to the brotherhood the basic truths of Christ's doctrine and the more important events of the life of Christ's Church for seven years. (In this regard, Met. Boris exact explained how to read these lectures for seven years, determining how to study the Gospel truths, the words of the Fathers, of Holy Scripture, and finally, the history of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.).

7. To immediately form societies, in accordance with the statutes for children in Orthodox societies, established for this purpose in all primary schools and junior high schools.

8. To offer to students in Orthodox Christian communities talks once a week for six months.

9. To teach the children in Orthodox Christian societies chanting, and adult Christians in Orthodox Christian brotherhoods.

10. To prepare carefully for the sermons they will give in church, and for the lectures they will hold in the brotherhoods and societies.

The next month, Met. Boris sent a letter to the teachers in his diocese, turning to them with heartfelt love, asking them create Church children’s choirs, thus aiding the activities of the Bulgarian Church. Met. Boris quickly created a high spiritual life by engaging many people to help in the Church’s evangelizing activity.

Every man has his gift, a gift from God, which he has to perfect and increase. The gift that God gave to Met. Boris was undoubtedly the gift of word. He was a man full of sincere and pure faith, virtuous, prayerful, and generous. He was also one of the great minds of his time, perfectly knowing Russian, Greek, German, French, Italian, English, Turkish, Romanian, and Hungarian. The knowledge of these languages ​​helped him to communicate with more and more people, among whom not all were Orthodox. He constantly monitored the emergence of new theological works in world theological thought. He was also distinguished by other people of his time. In addition to being well-educated, knowledgeable, and capable, he was above all modest and humble.

Met. Boris was appointed by Holy Synod to be part of the ecclesiastical delegation sent to Constantinople on the occasion of the ending of the schism of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church in 1945. At the end of the Liturgy, the Metropolitan of Nevrokop congratulated Ecumenical Patriarch Benjamin in Greek with the joyful event. He was also elected the chairman of the National Assembly, which took place in the Church of St. Sofia for the election of the third Bulgarian Exarch—Metropolitan Stephen.

On November 22, 1948, Church newspapers went into mourning. His Eminence Metropolitan Boris of Nevrokop had passed away. The memorializing words of Metropolitan Mikhail of Dorostol were printed on the first pages of the newspaper. He said,

A great and inexpressible affliction presses our hearts, and the Church and the people are bitterly complaining of the heavy and irreversible loss of our beloved brother and spiritual father, Metropolitan Boris of Nevrokop, who lies without breath, who suddenly became the victim of a crime unheard of in the life of our Church. At the feast of St. Dimitar of Thessalonica, when he celebrated his birthday, after celebrating the Divine Liturgy and after the sermon, Metropolitan Boris was killed in the village of Kolarovo, Petrich, by an unworthy former priest ... We mourn our separation from our dear and unforgettable brother. But as much as we mourn for him, let us not forget that he does not need our tears. No! He needs and wants us to be faithful to our holy Church and our people.

Met. Boris was murdered by Elijah Stamenov, a former priest whom he refused to accept back into the ranks of the priesthood. According to recently-discovered documents, he was connected with the communist authorities in Bulgaria.

The holy hieromartyr foresaw his death a day before it happened. “I dreamed of a pillar of fire taking me to the sky,” he told some friends.

Stamenov, was sentenced to seven years in prison, of which he spent three under a mild regime, but ended in the madhouse, repeatedly saying, “I killed him, I killed him ...”

On March 31, 2016, the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, after examining the letter of Metropolitan Seraphim of Nevrokop, gave its blessing to begin the procedure for the canonization of Met. Boris.

The last of the 76 poems published by Metropolitan Boris sounds like a summary of his entire life:

My love - Angelic habit.
My hope - virgin clothing.
My dreams - brilliant stars.
My desires - blameless suffering.
My early age - a martyr’s cross.
My Way in Life - The Way to Golgotha.

11/20/2018

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